


a girl worth fighting for

by red_carnations



Series: girl!kaz and the crows [1]
Category: Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Canon Dialogue, First Meetings, Gen, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Pre-Relationship, girl!kaz
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-18
Updated: 2019-11-18
Packaged: 2021-01-26 17:54:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21378151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/red_carnations/pseuds/red_carnations
Summary: Kaz inclined her head.  "You're a dangerous girl, Inej.  We both are.  I'd prefer you never became dangerous to me."Dangerous.  Inej liked the sound of that.
Relationships: Kaz Brekker & Inej Ghafa
Series: girl!kaz and the crows [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1551076
Comments: 2
Kudos: 48





	a girl worth fighting for

**Author's Note:**

> Kaz and Inej's first meeting, a little differently. Yes, the title is a Mulan reference.

There were many whispers about Kaz Brekker in the Menagerie. The girls said she was a demon, that her hands were permanently stained with blood beneath her black leather gloves, that her dark eyes could steal your soul away, that she had no heart and ruled a gang of her own with an iron fist. 

Inej wasn't sure which - if any - of the rumors were true. She didn't see Kaz often enough to be certain about anything. And she spotted the looks the other girls exchanged when they saw Kaz: longing, and a little envious, too. _This _ girl dressed in tailored suits, not revealing costumes, and strolled through the world freely. In this part of Ketterdam, freedom was a rare commodity.

Kaz paid Tante Heleen for information, so Inej only spotted her when Kaz was either entering the Menagerie or leaving it, her crow's head cane tapping against the marble floors in time with her polished dress shoes - and the time the two of them spent in the parlor rarely overlapped. But those few glimpses of Kaz had given her one impression: those black-quartz eyes were as dangerous and inscrutable as the ocean at midnight.

Working for Tante Heleen, Inej strived to keep her head down and avoid danger at all costs. But one night, she overheard something that gave her pause. Gossip about a silk trade exchanged between one of the other girls and a client. A small thing, so fragile that the slightest shift in politics would shatter it, but it made Inej's heart beat quicker to know she kept a secret close to her chest. On the bad nights, it was the only thing that kept her warm.

It didn't take long for Inej to determine what she wanted to do with her knowledge. Kaz Brekker dealt in secrets, and she was the only outsider who came to the Menagerie on a regular basis who wasn't in Tante Heleen's pocket. If this impressed Kaz, she could give Inej money, maybe even a letter to her parents so they'd at least know what had happened to her. The other girls called Kaz a monster, but there was something about her - perhaps the fact that she was a girl who'd somehow managed to make her way in this sharp-edged world - that made Inej think it wasn't a mistake to try and strike a deal.

So she waited in the parlor on the day Kaz usually showed up, and, like clockwork, the girl strolled through the doors at three bells on the dot. She wore her usual black suit and tie; her chin-length black hair had nary a strand out of place.

As Kaz made her way across the parlor, Inej slipped up behind her on silent feet. Years of training as an acrobat had made her adept at subtle movements. Kaz didn't even notice her approach until Inej leaned in and whispered, "I can help you," in her ear.

Kaz glanced over her shoulder at Inej, and Inej felt a shiver run down her spine at seeing those eyes so close. Then she turned away again, as if Inej had said nothing at all, disappearing down the hall to Heleen's salon.

Inej stared after her, heart in her throat, but Kaz was gone. All she could do now was wait.

The next morning, Inej woke to find one of Tante Heleen's enforcers in her doorway. None of the rooms at the Menagerie had locks, except, of course, Heleen's own.

"Tante Heleen wants to see you," the man informed her. He was massive, with broad shoulders and hands the size of Inej's face. "In the salon."

Terror spiked inside Inej; her heartbeat tripled in speed. "Why?" she managed, her mouth dry.

The man didn't respond.

Slowly, Inej dressed and made her way to Heleen's salon. Her memories of the last time she'd been there were as vivid as the bruises she'd gotten there had been, and with every step she took, her dread grew. 

When she opened the door, the first thing she saw was Kaz Brekker, wearing dark gray and leaning on her crow's head cane. Her dark silhouette made for an odd contrast with the gold and teal of the salon, but Inej could hardly think about color palettes as she froze in the doorway, a new surge of terror gripping her so tightly she could barely breathe. It seemed she'd been wrong about trusting Kaz after all.

Across the room, Heleen reclined in her silken chair behind the polished mahogany desk. Inej's fear must've shown, because she smiled in her lazy, feline way and said, "Come in, little lynx."

Somehow, Inej made herself move. Kaz watched her the whole way, and Inej got the impression that the other girl was studying her, as if Inej was a puzzle she hadn't yet figured out how to solve. It made Inej uncomfortable, but in a different way than the leering stares of the men in the parlor.

Heleen stretched lazily in her chair. "Well, it seems you're someone else's problem now. Apparently Per Haskell has a taste for Suli girls. He's purchased your indenture for a _very _tidy sum."

Inej swallowed. This didn't seem to be about what she'd told Kaz, but she'd learned the hard way that Heleen always played multiple games at once. "I'm moving to a different house?"

Heleen waved a hand, her many rings flashing. "Haskell does own a pleasure house - if you can call it that - somewhere in the lower Barrel, but you'd be a waste of his money there. Though you'd certainly learn how kind Tante Heleen has been to you. No, Haskell wants you for his very own."

Not a beating, then, but this was almost worse. Being sold to some strange man she didn't know, who could do anything he liked with her . . .

Tante Heleen laughed lightly; Inej's heart plummeted. "Don't worry. He's old, _disgustingly _old, but he seems harmless enough. Of course, one never knows." She gave an elegant shrug. "In any case, he's sent his errand girl, Miss Brekker, to fetch you for him."

Finally, Kaz turned her steely gaze on Tante Heleen. "Are we done?" It was the first time Inej had ever heard her speak, and her voice came as a shock: it was as cold and precise as a scalpel, pitched lower than one would expect from a short, slender teenage girl.

Heleen sniffed, expression dripping with disdain. "We are indeed, you little wretch." She heated a stick of peacock blue wax over the fire and used it to affix her seal to the crisp document on the desk before her. Rising from her chair, she adjusted her famous diamond choker so the stones glittered in the light of the salon. "Goodbye, little lynx," she said, stepping out from behind the desk so her turquoise gown slunk behind her. "I doubt you'll last more than a month in that part of the Barrel." She turned to Kaz. "Don't be surprised if she runs. She's faster than she looks. But maybe Per Haskell will enjoy that, too. You can see yourselves out."

She swept from the room in a billow of silk and honeyed perfume, leaving a stunned Inej in her wake.

As soon as she was gone, Kaz crossed the room and shut the door behind her. Slowly, the girl in the tailored suit turned to face Inej.

"Per Haskell runs the Dregs," Kaz said, eyes still fixed on Inej. "Have you heard of us?"

Inej hesitated, unsure if this was some kind of test. "They're your gang."

Kaz inclined her head. "Yes, and Haskell is my boss. Yours, too, if you like."

Inej didn't miss the way Kaz's jaw tightened when she said the word "boss". "And if I don't like?"

Kaz folded her arms. "I withdraw my offer and go back home looking like a fool. You stay here with that monster Heleen."

Inej's heart nearly stopped. "She listens," she whispered, hands at her mouth, too afraid to say much more.

"Let her. I pay Heleen for information. In fact, I pay her too much for information. But I know exactly what she is." Kaz's mouth twisted into something that could've been a smile, if it hadn't been for the anger smoldering quietly in her eyes. "You know, the first time I came here, she examined me for a while, then told me precisely how much money I'd fetch at auction."

"I'm sorry," Inej said before she could think better of it. The worst thing was, it sounded exactly like something Heleen would do.

"Don't be. I put an end to that when I threatened to strangle her with that diamond eyesore she wears. Anyway, I asked Per Haskell to pay off your indenture. Do you know why?"

"You thought he'd like a Suli girl?" Inej wasn't sure where the courage for that remark had come from, but she held Kaz's gaze.

"Neither he nor I know enough Suli girls to say. The other night, when you spoke to me -"

Inej's heart skittered against her ribs. "I meant no offense, I -"

Kaz held up one black-gloved hand and Inej fell silent. "You wanted to offer me information. Perhaps in return for help? A letter to your parents, some extra pay?"

"I -" Inej blushed, embarrassed that Kaz had read her so well. 

Kaz didn't wait for her answer. "Is Inej Ghafa your real name?"

Inej nearly burst into tears at the sound of it. "Yes," she managed.

"Is that what you prefer to be called?"

"Of course," Inej said, surprised by her own vehemence. Slightly emboldened, she added, "Is Kaz Brekker _your _ real name?"

"Real enough."

Inej dropped her gaze.

"Last night," Kaz continued, "when you approached me, I didn't know you were anywhere near me until you spoke."

Inej frowned, confused. Becoming silent was practically second nature to her; where was Kaz going with this?

"Bells on your ankles," Kaz said. She pointed to Inej's costume with the tip of her cane. "But I didn't hear you. Purple silks, spots painted on your shoulders, but I didn't see you. And I see _everything_. Were you trained as a dancer?"

"An acrobat." Even saying that much was difficult, but she forced the next words past her lips. "My family . . . we're all acrobats."

"High wire?" Kaz probed.

Inej nodded. "And swings. Juggling, tumbling . . . other things."

"Did you work with a net?"

"Only when I was very young." She could still hear her father's voice in her head: _A Ghafa never uses a net._

One side of Kaz's mouth hooked in a satisfied smile. That chilled Inej even more than her stare. "Good. There are no nets in Ketterdam. Have you ever been in a fight?"

"No."

"Killed someone?"

Inej's eyes widened in shock. "No!"

"Ever think about it?"

There was no judgement in Kaz's expression, only that even, analytical gaze. "Every night," Inej said after a moment's pause.

"That's a start."

Inej looked away, suddenly embarrassed again. "I don't want to kill people, not really."

"That's a solid policy until people want to kill you. And in our line of work, that happens a lot."

"_Our _line of work?" 

"I want you to join the Dregs. I need a spider to climb the walls of Ketterdam's houses and businesses, to listen at windows and in eaves. I need someone who can be invisible, who can become a ghost. Do you think you could do that for me?"

There were a thousand things Inej could've said, a thousand she wanted to say. She settled on, "I think so."

Kaz nodded. "This city is full of rich men and women. You're going to learn their habits, their comings and goings, the dirty things they do at night, the crimes they try to cover by day, their shoes sizes, their safe combinations, the toy they loved best as a child. And I'll use what you learn to take away their money."

"What happens when you take their money and you become a rich woman?"

Her smile broadened a touch, and there was a hint of genuine mirth in her eyes. "Then you can steal my secrets, too."

"This is why you bought me?"

The smile vanished and Kaz's eyes went cold once more. "Per Haskell didn't buy you, he paid off your indenture. That means you owe him money. A _lot _ of money. But at least it's a real contract, unlike this filth."

She pulled the document that had been on Heleen's desk from her coat. Inej hadn't even seen her take it. "Here," Kaz said. "I want you to see something."

Inej hesitated. "I don't read Kerch."

"Doesn't matter." Kaz held the paper out further and pointed to a line of numbers. "See this? It's the price Heleen claims you borrowed from her for transport from Ravka. This is the money you've earned in her employ. And _this _ is what you still owe her."

Inej blinked, trying to make the numbers come out right in her head. "But . . . but, that's not possible. It's more now than when I got here."

"She charged you for room, board, and grooming." There was something unreadable in Kaz's expression, an intensity that Inej wasn't sure if she liked.

"She - she _bought _me," Inej stammered, her voice growing thick with anger. "I couldn't even read what I was signing."

"Slavery is illegal in Kerch," Kaz said. "Indentures are not. I know this contract is a sham and any thinking judge would, too. Unfortunately, Heleen has many thinking judges in her pocket. Per Haskell is offering you a loan - no more, no less. Your contract will be in Ravkan. You'll pay interest, but it won't break you. And as long as you pay him a certain percentage every month, you'll be free to come and go as you please."

Inej shook her head, dazed. This couldn't be real.

Kaz's eyes narrowed at that. "Inej, let me be very clear with you. If you skip out on your contract, Haskell will send people after you who make Tante Heleen look like a doting grandmother. And I won't stop him. I'm putting my neck on the line for this little arrangement. It's not a position I enjoy. I already work too damn hard for respect, and I won't thank you to make it harder on me."

Inej tried to think. "If this is true," she said slowly, "then I'm free to say no."

"Of course." Kaz inclined her head. "But you're a dangerous girl, Inej. We both are. I'd prefer you never became dangerous to me."

_Dangerous_. Inej liked the sound of that. She still didn't know how she felt about this strange, dark girl with her knife-blade voice and eyes like burning coal, but unless Inej was very much mistaken, Kaz was offering her a way out.

"This . . . this isn't a trick, is it?" she asked at last.

When Kaz spoke, each word carried the deliberate weight of sincerity. "If it were a trick, I'd promise you safety. I'd offer you happiness. I don't know if that exists in the Barrel, but you'll find none of it with me."

Inej swallowed and nodded, preparing herself for the rest of her life. "All right," she said. "How do we begin?"

**Author's Note:**

> Leave me a comment if you enjoyed it!


End file.
